Waste gas becomes heat and electricity

Generating valuable energy from weak gases that are harmful to the climate: This is the innovative approach of CATALYTIC Power Solutions GmbH, a new joint venture between SMS group and KAEFER based in Bremen. The company markets a patent-pending technology for using waste gases as fuel.

Landfills globally contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emmisions. This is because the methane produced by the bacterial decomposition of organic compounds is around 28 times more harmful to the climate than the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2). According to the EU Commission, up to 26 percent of methane emissions in Europe come from landfills. In Germany alone, all landfills together release around 300,000 tons of methane a year - as much as three million cattle. This is why European landfill operators have to collect methane to achieve higher methane concentration, convert it into electricity at great expense with the help of a combined heat and power plant, or burn it in a flare with additional "good gas" like natural gas, which is harmful to the environment.

Power induced catalytic combustor

One system, multiple fields of application. CATALYTIC Power Solutions offers an innovative and sustainable approach to reduce or eliminate energy waste! The system supports a sustainable energy supply by thermal conversion of low calorific or non-ignitable gases.

The heart of this decentralized solution is the specially developed micro heavy-duty gas turbine. This technical solution enables reliable and highly efficient use of previously unused energy sources, which can thus be used for additional electricity production and as process heat.

Different from the competition

CATALYTIC Power Solutions offers a number of advantages over solutions currently available on the market.

Most competitive technologies require standardized fuels for start-up and often additional fossil fuels during operation.

In addition to the infrastructure required for this and its CAPEX and OPEX costs, CATALYTIC Power Solutions technology completely eliminates the need for additional fossil fuels.

In our flameless catalytic combustor, non-ignitable residual gases are completely converted into energy in an environmentally friendly manner.

Your advantages

  • Commissioning does not require any additional special fuel
  • Standard fuel gases can also be converted into electricity
  • Unit power rating from 50kW to (currently) 100kW available
  • High turn down (load modulation) from 0-100%
  • Excellent exhaust gas values due to flameless combustion
  • Coupling with recuperator enables higher electric power yields
  • High load modulation from 0-100
  • Use of waste heat for drying purposes and process energy (steam) intended

Why CATALYTIC Power Solutions?

  • Catalytic combustion opens up the possibility of using gases from landfills, biogas, pyrolysis gas, ... as feed energy for flameless combustion and power generation.
  • Compact plant with small space requirements (20 feet high cube container)
  • Use of one gas turbine for different fuel types/energy sources with high load modulation.
  • High life expectancy and very good maintainability.
  • Very low emissions due to catalytic combustion.
  • Increasing legal requirements for operators of landfills, aftercare for abandoned coal mines, biogas plants, biogas treatment etc. are efficiently met

Future Now...instead of future promises

We already offer the technology to minimize the emission of climate-damaging residual gases. The residual gases from production and aftercare can be utilized on site. The harmful effect of methane on the climate is minimized. In the process, residual materials available on site can be used as fuel. The decentralized provision of electrical energy and process steam relieves the distribution networks and increases supply and process reliability.

A particular challenge in the field of landfill and sewage gas is the sulfur load and the fluctuating concentration of methane content in the fuel gas. The technology we have developed is characterized by high robustness against sulfur and the flameless conversion leads to excellent emission values for NOx and CO.

The development of the technology, supported by financial means of the European Union, was already successfully applied at a landfill site and we were able to prove that even with decreasing methane content compared to currently existing technical solutions (CHP & flare), the plant operates trouble-free even at a low methane content of 20 vol%. The technology therefore points the way to the future and already exceeds the requirements of European legislation on the disposal of organic waste.

Business models

The technology and business model of CATALYTIC Power Solutions GmbH is characterized by a high degree of scalability and customized solutions in customer applications.

We offer an integrated solution for the use of gas mixtures that previously had to be disposed of as waste or had to be processed at great expense. Regulatory and stakeholder obligations are met reliably and safely.

The services can be purchased from us - plants can also be used in an equipment-as-a-service model (with or without a purchase option).

Contact us!